Kindergarten represents an environment for the children to discover the beautiful world around her. Kindergarten is meant to begin the educating of the growing kid. At kindergarten Casa Minunata we mean to teach the kids how to share and care, make new friends and spend some time on their own, away from the warm cocoon of parents and home. Of course, kindergarten is meant to be a home away from home for the little ones. It is a great opportunity for them to learn new things on their own, ask questions and get the answers. It is a stepping-stone for future education.

School year 2010-2011 has been on its way for 4 weeks now. The daily schedule is settling into a routine and everybody seems to enjoy the new activities that we have prepared for this year as well as the familiar ones.

A new little boy, Samuel by his name, has started with us this year. He presents severe Cerebral Palsy.

Samuel was warmly received in the first day of school and comfortably seated in a nice high chair. He will needintensive physical therapy, special feeding, an individualized learning program and intervention plan. A new life is starting for him: a new world to explore and enjoy and so many new friends. His grandmother is thrilled.

As many of you already know, a few years ago, Casa Minunata has started the new model of Inclusive Education. We believe that children belong together and there are so many values that they share and they should be never kept apart. It has been a time of growth and development, a time of joy, of reaching out ;and enriching our lives.

The curriculum in our Inclusive Education Program is designed to meet the needs of each child, in various areas of development. Through a variety of learning experiences, the children discover the world around them and the emotional world inside of them. And school is still a fun place to be.

We are happy to write to you about some highlights of this school year. The developing of our inclusive education model continues to be a challenge and an inspiration and we are happy to report good results.

Education specialists assert that educating children with disabilities alongside their nondisabled peers fosters understanding and tolerance, better preparing students of all abilities to function in the world beyond school. We can testify to that.

It's hard to fathom that the close of the school year is almost here. The end of the school year brings the expected joy at finishing another year, and perhaps some sadness at leaving behind a year filled with great experiences, teachers, and friends.

Although each school year is similar in routine and procedure, they are also as unique and individual as fingerprints. In one aspect or another teachers powerfully impact the lives of each one of our students. Each classroom is an extended family and community who live, play, work and coexist together for ten months.